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Energy committee reviews Tanko Lighting estimate for $125,000 streetlight conversion
Summary
The committee reviewed a Tanko Lighting estimate that projected up to $15,000 in annual savings from a roughly $125,000 streetlight conversion with an estimated payback under seven years; the company also reported up to 10% inaccuracies in current Eversource billing. The committee agreed to seek further study, cost details and peer references before bringing any funding question to town meeting.
The Northfield Energy Committee on May 18 reviewed a Tanko Lighting estimate that said the town could save up to $15,000 per year by replacing streetlights at an upfront cost of about $125,000 and an estimated payback of less than seven years. Tanko also reported finding as much as 10% inaccuracy in current Eversource billing.
Committee members discussed Tanko’s follow-up package, which would cost $29,750 and include a streetlight study, an inventory audit, a billing review and an outage inspection. Tanko estimated roughly $3,000 per year in maintenance costs that are currently billed through Eversource; the company’s expanded work would be used to refine those figures and the town’s estimated capital share (committee materials estimated the town would likely need to cover about $100,000 beyond the study fee).
Members raised procurement and liability questions, including whether components of the project must be bid separately and whether the town’s liability would change if it took ownership of lights now managed by Eversource. The committee asked Tanko to provide examples of lens, focus and color changes and discussed Dark Sky Association guidance favoring warm LED fixtures.
Next steps include contacting the Finance Committee about potential funding sources, seeking references from other towns that used Tanko (Erving was cited), and returning to Tanko with technical questions before recommending any article for town meeting.
